W. Side activist dedicated to equality

By William Pack :
January 8, 2013
: Updated: January 8, 2013 11:13pm

But through his dogged commitment to the principle of equal treatment, his hard work and a disarming sense of humor, Flores became a leader in the civil and voting rights movements that have reshaped San Antonio and much of the Southwest.

Flores, a West Side labor leader and political activist, died at his home Monday. He was 76.

Former Mayor Henry Cisneros called him a “power behind the scenes for several generations of political leaders” who pursued racial and ethnic justice unflinchingly but with a “rascally smile” and a levelheaded recognition of what was possible.

“He was the kind of person you build a city on,” Cisneros said. “We've come a long way in San Antonio, compared to the '50s and '60s. Arnold was a bridge across that chasm.”

Former City Council members María Antonietta Berriozábal and Walter Martinez also praised Flores, calling him a pioneer in organizing Hispanic and other minority neighborhoods and a strong advocate for the common person.

“He was always a force to try to bring people together,” said Martinez, who represented a West Side district from 1985 to 1992.

Former state Sen. Joe Bernal said Flores was involved at the beginning of the Johnson administration's War on Poverty and worked with voting rights leaders such as Willie Velásquez, who founded the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project.

Perhaps Flores' biggest contribution was his effort to break down differences between the West Side and the East Side so leaders could work on problems together, Bernal said.

“I think he had a goal in life of bringing people together for the common good,” Bernal said.

Flores was a native of Rio Grande City, but he and his family moved to San Antonio early in his life. His father owned a broom factory on Travis Street, said Flores' wife of 52 years, Gloria Santoy Flores.

She said her husband became active in labor organizing after sensing that he was being unfairly overlooked for promotion while working at Kelly AFB. He went from being an organizer in the Service Employees International Union to being its Texas state director.

Political activism followed because that allowed Flores to become more effective, his wife said.

From 1977 to 1980, he served as special assistant to the commissioner of what was then known as the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. In 1999, the Mexican foreign ministry presented him with an award for outstanding performance by a non-Mexican citizen in helping Mexican immigrants in the United States.

Son Arnold Rocky Flores said his father was an unselfish person and a “man of integrity” who taught his family to never forget its roots in the West Side.

Rocky is not a nickname: His father was a big boxing fan and named him partly after Rocky Marciano because he did not want to make him “junior,” he said.

“He had a firm belief that God made us all equal, and we should be treated equally,” the younger Flores said.